Welcome to the Breakfast Optimist Club of Kalamazoo – BOCK

Optimist Mission:

By providing hope and positive vision, Optimists bring out the best in our youth, our communities, and ourselves.

Get-Togethers:

Club Get-Togethers are on most Thursdays from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. EST at Michelle’s Restaurant, 677 Romence Road, Portage, MI 49024 (see map below).

Be a first time visitor. The club pays for your breakfast.

No Get-Together when Kalamazoo or Portage Public Schools are delayed or closed due to weather.

Get-Together Changes:

On the following Thursdays the time and location of the weekly get-togethers are changing:

March 28
April 25
May 23
June 27

On these Thursdays the weekly get-together starts at 5:30 p.m. EDT and is at the Traveler’s Craft BBQ and Whiskey Bar, https://travelerscraftbbqandwhiskeybar.com, 5225 Portage Road, Portage, MI 49002. No morning get-togethers on these six Thursdays.

Upcoming BOCK Activities:

Fundraisers: In early March one fundraiser will be  ending and another starting. On the weekend of Friday, March 8 and Saturday, March 9 BOCK ushering at Western Michigan University home football and hockey games is ending for the 2023 – 2024 season. During March and April BOCK has its annual Daisy Dollars fundraiser. BOCK sells $10 and $20 swipe cards for purchases at Schuring’s Retail Greenhouse, 610 Schuring Road, Portage, MI 49024, https://www.schuringgreenhouse.com. For every $10 worth of Daisy Dollars swipe cards BOCK sells the club earns 25% or $2.50. If interested in helping BOCK and purchasing Daisy Dollars swipe cards, use the Contact link at the top of this webpage to contact the club.

Oratorical Contest: This activity will start at 7 p.m. on Thursday, March 14, 2024 and take place at the Portage Public Safety Complex, 7810 Shaver Road, Portage, MI 49002.

Growlers Baseball Game: On Friday, June 7, 2024, the Growlers baseball game is against the Kokomo Jackrabbits. The game starts at 6:35 p.m. Information about cost forthcoming. The Growlers have a program to honor non-profit organizations, https://northwoodsleague.com/kalamazoo-growlers/non-profit-of-the-night/

 

Recent BOCK Activities:

On Saturday, February 24, 2024, BOCK participated in the Big Brothers Big Sisters, BBBS, fundraiser Bowl For Kids’ Sake at Revel & Roll West on Stadium Drive. BOCK had two bowling teams. Teams of 5 or 6 people pledge to raise a minimum of $75 each (or $375 per 5-person team, or $450 per 6-person team) to participate. BBBS website with details: https://thinkbigtoday.org/events/bowl-for-kids-sake.

On Wednesday, February 7, 2024, starting at 6:30 p.m. the club participated in PowerUp. About 20 club members worked as assembly lines placing food items in bags. These bags of food items are then delivered to local Portage schools on Friday to help children with food insecurities get through the weekend. We packed about 400 bags in one hour. Link to information about Power Up: https://www.radiant.church/powerup

On Thursday, December 7, 2023, the regular get-together was at 5:30 p.m. at Travelers Cafe & Pub, 5225 Portage Rd, Portage. The club wrapped presents for the folks we adopted this year for Christmas.

On Sunday, November 26, 2023, the club decorated a Christmas Tree in Celery Flats. The theme is “A Little Piece of Me!” 

On Wednesday, November 1, 2023, the club packaged weekend food items for needy kids as part of the PowerUp program. Link to PowerUp, https://www.radiant.church/powerup

On Saturday, October 21, 2023, the club participated in the10th Annual Trunk or Treat event for youth and adults with developmental/intellectual disabilities. It was sponsored by the Great Lakes Center of Autism Treatment and Research at 9616 Portage Rd. 

Another event on Saturday, October 21, 2023, that the club participated in was the Monster Mash which was sponsored by the city of Portage and is from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. in Ramona Park, 8600 Sprinkle Road. 

On Wednesday, October 4, 2023, from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m., the club partnered with the Portage Department of Public Safety, and the City of Portage Youth Advisory Committee to host an annual free event, Respect for Law, at Ramona Park, 8600 South Sprinkle Road.

Clubs BOCK recently founded and/or assists:

The Smile Always Uganda Foundation Optimist Club, assists 2023.
The Rise Optimist Club, Kalamazoo, founded 2022.
Movers and Shakers Optimist Club of Greater Grand Rapids, founded 2020.
Portage Central High School Rise & Shine Optimist Club, founded 2019.

Optimist Activities:

The Optimist Creed:

Promise yourself –

To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.

To talk health happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet.

To make all your friends feel that there is something in them.

To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.

To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.

To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.

To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.

To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile.

To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others.

To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.

 

Inspirational Quote:

“Optimism is a strategy for making a better future. Because unless you believe that the future can be better, you are unlikely to step up and take responsibility for making it so.”―Noam Chomsky

Google Maps, Thursday Get-togethers, Michelle’s Restaurant: